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Pennsylvania · South-Central Pennsylvania · Gettysburg · #566 Most Populous County in the US
Adams County, Pennsylvania
Home to Gettysburg - the most visited Civil War battlefield in the United States and the site of Lincoln's Gettysburg Address - from the orchards and rolling hills of the South Mountain ridge to Hanover's snack food industry heritage and a county that balances profound historical significance with agricultural and small-city Pennsylvania character. Property tax, courts, public records, and senior services for Adams County residents.
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Adams County's assessment ratio means effective tax rates are low — but incorrect appraisals still cost money. Ownwell manages the appeal with no upfront cost.
Office: Adams County Department of Emergency Services – 230 Greenamyer Lane, Gettysburg, PA 17325 | (717) 334-8603 | Fax: (717) 334-1822 | 911 Center Fax: (717) 334-6926
Services: Operates the county’s 911 Emergency Communications Center; runs the county’s Hazardous Materials Planning and Response program (PA Act 165 and SARA Title III); coordinates training for emergency responders and works with county, state, and federal agencies; oversees the Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC)
Notes: Under PA Title 35, each municipality must maintain its own local emergency management coordinator and up-to-date emergency operations plan alongside county coordination.
Roads & Utilities
ROADS & TRANSPORTATION
Roads: US-15 and US-30 (Lincoln Highway) serve Gettysburg, the county seat, in south-central Pennsylvania near the Maryland border
Transit: Freedom Transit provides limited local bus service in the Gettysburg area – confirm current routes directly.
Business & Permits
BUILDING & PERMITS
Office: Adams County Planning Department – 19 Baltimore Street, #101, Gettysburg, PA 17325 | (717) 337-9824
Services: Building/land use permit information and coordination for Adams County
Notes: Many Adams County municipalities (Gettysburg Borough, New Oxford, Littlestown, and various townships) issue their own building permits – confirm the correct jurisdiction for your property.
Veterans Services
VETERANS SERVICES
County VSO: Adams County Veterans Affairs Office – Gettysburg, PA
Libraries
LIBRARIES
System: Adams County Library System – 6 branches: Gettysburg, New Oxford, Carroll Valley, Littlestown, East Berlin (Jean Barnett Trone Memorial Library), and Biglerville (Harbaugh-Thomas Library)
Main Branch: Gettysburg Branch – 140 Baltimore St (also listed as 104 Baltimore Street), Gettysburg, PA 17325 | (717) 334-0163 | Hours: Mon–Thu 9 AM–8:30 PM, Fri–Sat 9 AM–5 PM, Sun 1–5 PM
Services: Incorporated in 1945 as the Adams County Public Library Association; the Gettysburg branch occupies the borough’s former federal post office building; all six branches coordinate interlibrary loans; offers book clubs, movie events, technology classes, story time, and public computer/internet access
Parks & Recreation
PARKS & RECREATION
Key Assets: Adams County is genuinely home to the EISENHOWER NATIONAL HISTORIC SITE, the preserved home and 690-acre farm of Dwight D. Eisenhower, the 34th President of the United States, located in Cumberland Township just outside Gettysburg and immediately adjacent to the Gettysburg Battlefield; Eisenhower first became connected to the area as a young Army officer, commanding Camp Colt (a WWI-era tank training camp) on the Gettysburg battlefield grounds in 1918; while serving as president of Columbia University in 1948-1950, he and his wife Mamie began searching for a permanent home and purchased the roughly 189-acre farm in 1950 – the only home they ever owned; after his 1952 election, the farm became his presidential retreat, hosting informal meetings with world leaders during the Cold War, and after leaving the White House in 1961, it became the couple’s full-time residence until his death in 1969; Eisenhower kept a small prize-winning Angus cattle herd on the property, and the farm’s several barns include two traditional Pennsylvania bank barns and a 1957-58 show barn designed with Penn State agricultural guidance; the preserved house retains the family’s original furnishings, including a lacquered coffee table gifted by the First Lady of Korea marking the anniversary of the Korean War armistice – an agreement Eisenhower considered one of his proudest achievements; the site was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1967, drawing over 75,000 visitors in 2025; the county is also genuinely famous for its orchards and agritourism, including the historic circa-1914 Round Barn & Farm Market, one of the nation’s few surviving round barns
Notes: The Eisenhower National Historic Site’s genuine, extensively documented connection to a sitting US president – literally bordering the Gettysburg Battlefield – makes it one of the most historically significant landmarks in this project.
GIS & Maps
GIS & MAPS
GIS Portal: Adams County GIS – accessible via adamscountypa.gov
Parcel Search: Adams County Assessment Office
Addressing/911: Coordinated through Adams County Department of Emergency Services
Animal Services
ANIMAL SERVICES
Facility: Adams County SPCA – 11 Goldenville Road, Gettysburg, PA 17325 | (717) 334-8876 | Hours: Mon 9 AM–3 PM (adoption appointments only); general hours vary Mon/Wed–Sat 11 AM–6 PM depending on source – confirm current schedule directly
Services: A nonprofit providing animal sheltering and adoption, investigation of animal cruelty and neglect, emergency animal rescue, and low-cost spay/neuter services for cats; adoptions are by appointment only
Environmental & Waste
ENVIRONMENTAL / WASTE MANAGEMENT
Environmental Complaints: PA Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) – dep.pa.gov
Notes: Contact Adams County directly for current refuse collection and recycling program details.
NOTES
Adams County is genuinely home to the Eisenhower National Historic Site, the preserved farm and retirement home of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, sitting immediately adjacent to the Gettysburg Battlefield. All contact information above was sourced from official county, city, library, and shelter pages as of this writing; phone numbers and hours should be reconfirmed directly with the relevant office before a visit.
About Adams County
Adams County is a south-central Pennsylvania county and the 566th most populous in the United States, covering 522 square miles of the South Mountain ridge and Great Valley south of the Blue Ridge.
Gettysburg (the county seat, population ~8,000) is one of the most historically significant communities in American history – the site of the Battle of Gettysburg (July 1–3, 1863), the largest battle ever fought in the Western Hemisphere, in which approximately 51,000 soldiers were killed, wounded, or went missing over three days. The Union victory at Gettysburg, combined with the simultaneous fall of Vicksburg, marked the turning point of the Civil War. President Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address – delivered at the dedication of the Soldiers’ National Cemetery on November 19, 1863 – is among the most eloquent and studied speeches in American history.
The Gettysburg National Military Park – 6,000 acres of preserved battlefield with over 1,300 monuments and markers – draws over a million visitors annually. The Gettysburg Museum and Visitor Center and the Cyclorama (a 360-degree painting of Pickett’s Charge) provide immersive historical experiences. Gettysburg College (a private liberal arts institution founded 1832, enrollment ~2,700) sits adjacent to the battlefield.
Hanover (population ~15,000) is the county’s second and largest community – a manufacturing and retail city best known as a center of snack food production. Utz Quality Foods, Snyder’s of Hanover (now part of Campbell Soup), Revonah Pretzels, and other snack companies have made Hanover one of the snack capital communities of the United States, with an olfactory signature of pretzels and chips that visitors notice immediately.
Adams County’s fruit orchards – particularly apples and peaches – are among the most productive in Pennsylvania, with the South Mountain slopes providing ideal orchard terrain. The annual National Apple Harvest Festival in Biglerville is one of Pennsylvania’s most-attended agricultural fairs.
All Services
Browse every category and topic available for this county.
Adams County uses a base year assessment system with the CLR determining the effective relationship between assessed and market values.
The appeal process: File with the Adams County Board of Assessment Appeals at 117 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA 17325, phone 717-337-9835. Deadline: August 1 for the following tax year. PA inheritance tax: 0% to spouses, 4.5% to direct descendants, 12% to siblings, 15% to all others.
OWNWELL CTA: Adams County Board of Assessment Appeals: August 1. Gettysburg tourism economy and Hanover market stable; orchard and rural land assessment unique considerations. PA inheritance tax 4.5% to descendants. Ownwell manages the appeal with no upfront cost.
Recommended
Adams County Board of Assessment Appeals: August 1. Gettysburg tourism economy and Hanover market stable; orchard and rural land assessment unique considerations. PA inheritance tax 4.5% to descendants. Ownwell manages the appeal with no upfront cost.
Courts & Legal
Courts & Legal
Orphans’ Court (Probate): The Adams County Orphans’ Court and Register of Wills at 111 Baltimore Street, Gettysburg, PA 17325, phone 717-337-9846, handle wills, estate administration, and guardianships.
Court of Common Pleas: Handles civil, criminal, and family matters.
Recorder of Deeds: The Adams County Recorder of Deeds at 111-117 Baltimore Street maintains real property records. Land records searchable online.
Senior Services
The Adams County Office of Aging at 318 W. Middle Street, Gettysburg, PA 17325, phone 717-334-9111, serves the county’s senior population with in-home services, caregiver support, nutrition programs, and transportation. WellSpan Gettysburg Hospital provides significant geriatric care.
Recommended
Assisted living, memory care, and independent living across Adams County - from Gettysburg and Hanover to Littlestown, Biglerville, and the South Mountain orchard communities.
Genealogy
County-level record sources
Adams County Register of Wills, Gettysburg (probate/estate case files from 1800 – see Probate section above).
Adams County was formerly part of York County prior to 1800; earlier records may be found there.
Local societies
No dedicated Adams County genealogical society was confirmed in available directories.
Probate & Estate
Losing someone and having to deal with courts and paperwork at the same time is hard. This section won’t make that easier, but it should tell you what to expect, what it costs, and where to go – so at least you’re not walking in blind.
Where to go
Register of Wills, Adams County County Courthouse, 117 Baltimore Street, Room 103, Gettysburg, PA 17325 (717) 337-9806
Adams County was founded January 22, 1800 (formed from York County), named for John Adams, in south-central Pennsylvania, seated in Gettysburg. The Register of Wills office holds probate records dating back to 1800.
Step 1: figure out which path applies
Pennsylvania has NOT adopted the Uniform Probate Code. Probate runs through its own statute, the Probate, Estates and Fiduciaries (PEF) Code, Title 20 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes. Probate begins at the Register of Wills – an elected county official – in the county where the decedent lived. Routine, uncontested probate happens entirely at the Register of Wills; only disputes escalate to the Orphans’ Court Division of the Court of Common Pleas.
Small Estate Petition (20 Pa.C.S. § 3102) – available when the estate’s personal property (excluding real estate) totals $50,000 or less. This lets an interested party petition the Orphans’ Court directly for approval of a proposed distribution, skipping the need to formally open a full probate estate. Real property is never covered by this simplified process.
Formal Probate – required for estates exceeding $50,000 in personal property, or for any estate involving real property that needs to pass through probate. The Register of Wills validates the will (if any) and issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
Step 2: filing for administration
The personal representative files with the Register of Wills in Adams County, along with the original will if one exists.
The Register of Wills reviews and, if in order, issues Letters Testamentary or Letters of Administration.
The personal representative gathers assets, notifies heirs and known creditors, and begins settling the estate.
Pennsylvania has a one-year creditor period running from the date of death, not from any published notice.
A Pennsylvania Inheritance Tax Return (REV-1500) must be filed with the Register of Wills, regardless of estate size.
Once debts, taxes, and expenses are settled, remaining assets are distributed according to the will or Pennsylvania’s intestacy laws, and the estate is closed.
What it costs
Filing fees vary; check with Adams County directly for current fees.
Pennsylvania has NO separate state estate tax, but its INHERITANCE TAX applies to virtually every estate: 0% to a surviving spouse (and to a parent inheriting from a child 21 or younger), 4.5% to children and other lineal descendants, 12% to siblings, and 15% to everyone else. No dollar exemption.
A 5% early-payment discount applies if paid within 3 months of death; the return and payment are otherwise due within 9 months.
Probate filings, estate administration, and guardianship matters are handled by the following office(s):
REGISTER OF WILLS
111-117 Baltimore St, Gettysburg, PA 17325
(717) 337-9835
Public Safety & Arrests
Arrest records, inmate search, and law enforcement services are handled by the following office(s):
SHERIFF
111-117 Baltimore St, Gettysburg, PA 17325
(717) 337-9843
Elections & Voting
Voter registration, polling locations, and elections information are handled by the following office(s):
BOARD OF ELECTIONS
117 Baltimore St, Gettysburg, PA 17325
(717) 337-9832
Health & Human Services
Offices & Contacts
Health services, social services, and assistance programs are handled by the following office(s):
Office of Human Services
25 Kelly's Bridge Ln, Gettysburg, PA 17325
(717) 334-9296
Assistance Office (DHS)
810 Biglerville Rd, Gettysburg, PA 17325
(717) 334-1483
Public Health Information
PUBLIC HEALTH
Office: Adams County Public Health / PA Department of Health regional office – Gettysburg, PA
Services: Immunizations, WIC, environmental health, vital records
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